NDP leader’s reckless plan would lead to ballooning deficits

When pressed by reporters, NDP Leader Cam Broten continues to maintain his plan is "fully-costed", despite there being 18 huge promises in his platform where no costing is listed whatsoever.  

On Saturday in Saskatoon, a reporter asked Mr. Broten to provide details of how the NDP would pay for their education promises – Broten just kept repeating that his plan is “fully-costed”. 

He is utterly and completely wrong. 

Below is a list of 18 promises found in the NDP’s platform. Also below are the tables from the NDP’s costing document that shows how they would pay for those promises. Those 18 promises are simply not there.

The public deserves some answers from Mr. Broten. Why are those promises not accounted for in your platform? How will the NDP pay for those expensive promises? How can we trust the NDP to not raise our taxes or run massive deficits with a reckless plan like this?

Whatever the answers, Mr. Broten cannot continue saying his plan is "fully-costed".

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Here are the 18 uncosted promises from the NDP's 2016 election platform:

1. Lowest cost utility bundle, page 10.
2. 2500 new affordable and social housing units, page 11.
3. Bring back the EnerGuide for Houses program, page 11.
4. Dedicated infrastructure funding for municipalities, page 14.
5. Eliminate the small business tax for businesses with at least three employees, page 14.
6. Fix up and expand schools and build new ones, page 14.
7. Improve Crop Insurance including better flood coverage and spot-loss hail, page 18.
8. Increase Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) enforcement funding by 25 per cent, page 19.
9. Improve patient flow and scheduling for quicker access to diagnostics, page 23.
10. Invest significantly in fixing up hospitals and building new ones, page 23.
11. Fix up long-term care facilities and build new ones, page 27.
12. Build an all-weather road to Wollaston Lake, page 30.
13. Reduce electricity rates for northern residents, page 30.
14. Remove the crossover formula from the First Nations Gaming Framework Agreement, page 31.
15. Undertake a basic income pilot project, page 32.
16. Implement a comprehensive poverty reduction strategy, page 32.
17. Re-instate cancelled STC routes, page 33.
18. Expand SaskWater’s water grid, page 34.

These are the four pages of spending costs listed in the 2016 NDP Election Promise Fiscal Plan. You won't find the cost of the 18 promises listed above anywhere here.